Rashid Khan’s quickfire century helped Sussex to a five-wicket victory against Yorkshire on Tuesday, despite the unrest in Afghanistan.
After Luke Wright had scored 54, Khan stepped in with Sussex needing 43 off 21 balls to win.
But the Afghanistan T20 skipper unleashed his ‘helicopter’ stroke, hitting three fours and two sixes in nine balls to guide Sussex home.
After a match at Durham, Khan said he needed to “back my abilities” and thanked the coaching team for putting him in early to complete the game. The third Test between England and India begins Wednesday at Yorkshire’s Headingley headquarters.
“We had a lengthy conversation here on the boundary talking about it and he’s concerned,” said Kevin Pietersen, a former England captain turned Sky Sports pundit.
A lot is occurring for him since he can’t get his family out of Afghanistan.
In such conditions, Khan’s performance was extraordinary, according to Pietersen.
🚁 RASHID KHAN 🚁
— Vitality Blast (@VitalityBlast) August 24, 2021
How have you played this??!!#Blast21 pic.twitter.com/KU2DCptXgp
That he was able to forget about that and navigate his narrative and keep the momentum going was perhaps one of the most heart-warming stories of this Hundred thus far.